THE BOOKMONGER: Guidebooks lead to muddy boots, magnificent views

Chances are Bob Mooers has never succumbed to the Seasonal Affective Disorder for which our region is infamous. The Bellingham mountaineer and self-professed "nature junkie" has been too busy scouting out trails and compiling them into a new book, "Winter Hikes in Puget Sound and the Olympic Foothills."

Escaping the confines of four walls and going for a brisk tramp, even in inclement weather or on muddy trails, is bound to pick up one's spirits. In this enthusiastic new guide, Mooers lists 60 hikes that can be reasonably attempted at any time of year - in other words, the trails can be expected to be "mostly snow-free."

Appropriately, Mooers begins "Winter Hikes" with sober and solid advice regarding safety and preparation. He cautions that "the three things guaranteed to rob your body of heat (and cause hypothermia) are also the three most commonly encountered Northwest winter conditions from October to May: low temperatures, rain (even a drizzle) and wind."

With that in mind, the traditional "Ten Essentials" - specific items that hikers are urged to carry at all times - more than double to 21 essentials for winter hiking. Even with this amount of preparation, the author advises simply turning back if snow does begin to fall. After all, if a trail becomes unrecognizable, "the outing has ceased to be a hike and has become wilderness navigation."

From shoreline to summit and in between, Mooers has a passion for scenic vistas. Readers who follow his suggestions will not be disappointed in that department. Check out his notes on Ebey's Landing or Mt. Erie, on Wallace Falls or Whistle Lake. The hike outlines and descriptions are clear and informative and the use of USGS topographical maps ensures accuracy. In no time at all you'll be digging your hiking boots out of the back of the closet.

Why wait until spring when you have this kind of good information at hand?

The biggest disappointment of this book is that the South Puget Sound region is entirely and inexcusably overlooked. In his acknowledgments, Mooers hints at the possibility of a follow-up volume. But according to his publisher, Sasquatch, this isn't on the docket any time soon.

Some of that slack can be taken up, however, in a substantially augmented third edition of "A Waterfall Lover's Guide to the Pacific Northwest," recently released by Mountaineers Books. Compiled by geographer Gregory Plumb, this guide contains complete directions for viewing more than 500 waterfalls in Oregon, Idaho and Washington - including many throughout Puget Sound. (For serious waterfall buffs, an additional 724 cataracts are listed in the index in the back of the book.)

Rated for magnitude, aesthetics and accessibility, the waterfalls are astonishingly different from one another. Plumb describes the eight basic variations of waterfalls and explains how watershed size, precipitation, elevation and season can have an effect on what you'll see.

Plentiful black-and-white photos will whet the appetite - now it's up to you to get out and get wet!

"Winter Hikes in puget sound and the olympic foothills"

by Bob Mooers

Sasquatch, $15.95

"A Waterfall lover's guide to the pacific northwest"

by Gregory A. Plumb

The Mountaineers, $14.95

The Bookmonger is Barbara Lloyd McMichael, who writes this weekly column focusing on the books, authors and publishers of the Pacific Northwest.

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